After walking home from school drop-off, I jumped in the car, blasted the Christmas music and took off to accomplish my list of errands. Remember? One of the items on my Christmas wish list includes listening to lots of Christmas music, so this was a good start! The first song was a funny, upbeat song. Have you heard of the parody Nutcracker by the a cappella group Straight No Chaser? If not, it is imperative you search for it once you're finished with this post. It is hysterical!
Anyway... after that song came a tune that I have disliked ever since my dad died almost thirty years ago... I'll Be Home For Christmas. It was the first time I had heard it this season. I know it was originally written to honor soldiers who were overseas who longed to be home for the holidays, but it makes me think of all those who are not here anymore from my dad to Shelby, and so many in between.
I know I should have skipped the song, but I welcomed the tears. It was nearly nine o'clock in the morning and I hadn't cried yet... so I might as well get the day started. This was not a loud, sobbing, ugly cry. Just my new standard... a steady stream of tears that soaked my face and ran down to my shirt.
I was sitting at the stoplight crying, and as the song finished, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. It was one of the local homeless men who usually stands on the median with a sign. He was standing just far enough away from my window that I didn't feel threatened, waving his arms and holding something out to me with a very soft, kind expression. As I blinked away the tears, I was able to bring this gentle man into focus, and I could see what he had in his hand.
He had set down his sign and picked up a box of tissues from his cart. So I opened my window, and I accepted his gift. I grabbed a tissue out of the box and wiped my tears. He respectfully nodded at me and said, "May God bring you comfort today. Here... have another one." And he took one out of the box this time and handed it to me through the open window.
I mouthed "thank you" to the man, and we both waved as the light turned green. Then I just drove along thinking how much that man caught me off guard. At first, I questioned my sanity because I actually rolled down the window to accept something from a stranger... a panhandler no less... and I used the tissue from his soiled hand to wipe my tears. But the longer I thought about it, I could only think about the kindness of a stranger who saw me crying and offered me a gift to wipe my tears... a simple tissue.
It was a great reminder that the homeless are not so different from the rest of us. There can be mental illness, drug and alcohol addiction, and just poor circumstances that lead them to this life. This man could have experienced a great loss, just like mine, and not had the tools to recover. He reminded me that there are kind people from throughout the community that can bring us joy... if we will just allow it to happen.
